India to soon have separate pharmaceuticals ministry
Soon India will have a separate ministry for
pharmaceuticals which will specifically deal with the issues pertaining to the
pharma industry. "I have requested
our Prime Minister Modiji to have an umbrella ministry for the pharma industry.
We are hoping that it will be in place in sometime.”
"It
is a sunrise industry and needs to be set up fast," Union minister for
chemicals and fertilisers Ananth Kumar said. He was speaking at the second
edition of Mail Today's Health Conclave. Kumar, who recently attended the BRICS
wellness workshop, raised the issue of integrated medicine at the seminar. Emphasising
on 3As - authenticity, affordability and availability of medicines - he said
that as per the rough estimate, nearly 50 per cent of the Indian population is
not consuming 50 per cent of the consumption value.
Talking about the government's Jan Aushadi
Yojana, he said that more than 400 outlets across the country have been set up
so far and by the end of the year the country will have around 3,000 such
centres that provide generic medicines to the poor patients at almost 40-50 per
cent of the market price.
"Such
centres will reduce the burden by 60 per cent. It is a great step towards
improving the healthcare system," Kumar said.
PRADHAN
MANTRI JAN AUSHADHI YOJANA
A countrywide campaign, for ensuring
availability of generic medicines at affordable prices for all, under the
project title Pradhan
Mantri Jan Aushadhi Yojana (PMJAY) was initiated by the department
of pharmaceuticals in association with central pharma public sector
undertakings. It envisages key initiative of opening of dedicated outlets - Pradhan Mantri Jan
Aushadhi Kendras (PMJAK) - where high-quality generic medicines are
sold at low prices. Bureau of Pharma PSUs of India (BPPI) is
implementing the scheme.
India has almost 10,000 pharma companies
which are producing one lakh pharma formulation. The government has set up a
pharma data bank in which the companies will have to register and give all the
details. "About 63,000 formulations have been registered in the last two
years. Pharma parks are being set up and many more will come up in the
respective states of the country," he added.
CARDIAC
STENT UNDER DRUG PRICE CONTROL DEPARTMENT
In an interesting move, the government has
decided to bring cardiac stent under the drug price control department.
According to the experts, the cost of the stent varies and it goes up to Rs 2.5
lakh. "We are going to regulate the
price of cardiac stent to make them affordable for the common man. Patients are
charged up to Rs 2.5 lakh," said Kumar. He cited a survey which showed
that 90 per cent of the senior citizens at least take one medicine per day and
almost 60 per cent of them take two to three medicines every day.
Talking about the importance of regulatory
framework for affordable healthcare, he said that the "Modi's government policies are
forwardlooking and caring".
"We
want to be forwardlooking in terms of the quality. At the same time, we will be
providing affordable medicines to the patients," he added.
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